Kitchener-Waterloo-based cleantech startup Evercloak has raised $2 million in seed funding as it gears up to commercialize its energy efficient membrane technology.
The round was led by Bioindustrial Innovation Canada through the business accelerator’s Sustainable Chemistry Alliance fund, with participation from Greensoil Ventures, Groundbreak Ventures, Ontario Centres of Innovation, and a number of angel investors.
Nearly 70 countries recently pledged to reduce their cooling emissions by 68 percent by 2050.
A spinout from the University of Waterloo founded in 2018, Evercloak has developed ultra-thin nanofilms designed to reduce the energy used by commercial and residential air conditioning and dehumidification systems. Aimed at lowering greenhouse gas emissions, the startup says its technology can reduce air conditioning energy demands by more than 50 percent.
According to the United Nations, conventional cooling, such as air conditioning, is responsible for over seven percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, and if not managed, energy needs for space cooling will triple by 2050.
Nearly 70 countries, including Canada, recently pledged to reduce their cooling emissions by 68 percent by 2050.
Evercloak says its tech could help these nations meet those targets. The startup’s nanocoatings range from single atomic layers to hundreds of nanometers in thickness, and can produce films using a variety of materials, including graphene oxide, graphene, and carbon nanotubes, among others.
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The startup says it has found a way to develop these membranes at scale with minimal energy needs and waste. Evercloak completed trials of two demonstration units last summer and is now preparing to commercialize this technology.
“We’ve proven our technology works,” Evercloak co-founder and CEO Evelyn Allen said in a statement. “This funding injection allows us to scale up our membrane manufacturing, strengthen our commercial team and give the world a more sustainable way to cool buildings.”
In addition to its most recent funding round, Evercloak previously received investment from the federal government through Sustainable Development Technology Canada’s seed fund. It was also one of ten winners of the Breakthrough Energy Solutions Canada initiative in 2020.
Feature image courtesy Unsplash. Photo by Minh Triet.